BoardPro Podcasts (Get on Board)

Your board is the ultimate decision-making group for your organisation. Board members are rightfully asked to address and take responsibility for the most complex matters you will ever face. 

Diversity of Thought adds value when facing complexity. Boards should therefore aspire to a higher level of Diversity of Thought than other organisational groups. This requires boards to consider their composition based on Diversity of Thought, alongside the typical skills, experience and representative diversity 

Is your board using its most effective tool?

The organisations we govern have responsibilities that require round the clock decision making. Boards can only make decisions when they convene formally for board meetings.

Do we expect our staff to sit around waiting for us to turn up to make everyday kinds of decisions? Of course not, and so, we have to delegate authority to them to act on our behalf when the board is not in session.

When we delegate to our chief executive, do we give them a blank cheque to make whatever choices take their fancy? No, we don’t do that either! We give ‘policy’ guidance which fully realised is a very effective and necessary form of ‘remote control device’ but far too often neglected by boards of all kinds.

Board meeting cycles are the lifeblood of the work of the Board. Individual Board meetings are where most of the discussion and ultimately decisions are made and are therefore the most important mechanism that the Board has at its disposal. The authority of the Board arises from its collective nature, which necessitates meetings to address the collective decision making. 

In many instances, Board schedules are treated as an agreed set of dates that the Board will meet, with little or no thought given to the larger strategic issue of the specific focus for each of those Board meetings. As the most important tool of the Board, meeting cycles require more advance planning and alignment with the strategic, risk, governance and operational requirements of the organisation. The role of Board committees also needs to be reviewed and integrated into the Board meeting cycle. Gone are the days when Board committees met just prior to the Board meeting, as it was convenient for all concerned. 

Traditional Board induction packs can leave new Directors disengaged (even before they begin). This can be challenging especially if you want them to reach their potential quickly but don’t have the time to coach them personally through this transition.

Imagine if...

• All the Directors who undertook your Board induction were confident and prepared at their first meeting.
• Each of your new Directors was asking the right questions, reading and participating in all Board papers and discussions.
• All new Directors were enthusiastic about their tenure, and brought fresh insights to the table, even if they are volunteers with little to no formal experience.

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According to directors, the CEO report is the most important document in the board pack and it’s their go-to doc. However, most organisations struggle with it and very few get it right. 

Why? Because there are many pitfalls to avoid and it can get tricky. CEOs who are pressed for time often assume that everything the board members need can be found in the team’s documents. 

It’s also not uncommon for CEOs to believe that it’s frustrating for directors to read a document that duplicates what has already been laid out in the board pack. For these reasons, CEOs don’t always think it’s necessary to write a report. 

They think they can just verbally say what they need or provide bullet points. However, that’s not enough. When CEO reports are done well, they provide chief executives with opportunities for reflection and it allows them to tap into the expertise because it answers many questions. 

For one, CEO reports give board members insight into what’s on the CEOs’ mind, which is something the board needs to be truly effective and benefit the organisation as much as possible. 

While minutes often feature in-jokes about board performance (for example, ‘boards take minutes and waste hours’), they are no laughing matter. Board meetings are an essential component of an organisation’s decision-making process. The record (minutes) of the conduct of those meetings is a direct indication of the quality of a board’s administration.

For various reasons, the quality of the minutes and the protection of their integrity, once approved and signed off, are treated with considerable gravity. Boards should pay closer attention to both the recording and approval of their minutes than is often the case.

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Learn how to contribute to effective boardroom dynamics to get the best out of the governance minds in the room and support high quality decision-making.

Download Board Dynamics Guide

Download Understanding Board Dynamics Presentation

A key factor in building positive board dynamics

We have all been on those boards where there is a person who just seems to disrupt the flow, sees the world differently or consistently seeks out opportunities for conflict. How we respond to these situations is a key factor in building positive board dynamics. While a skilled Chair helps, every board member has a responsibility for the success of the meeting and the quality of the decisions made. Learn about the key ingredients of effective board dynamics and how these contribute to high quality decision-making. 

Focus only on those strategic items that matter

Do your meetings tend to get unfocussed or off-track, or are they a sound use of time, focusing on strategic items that move your organisation forward?

Provide your directors with clarity on what they should do with each paper, and reduce the amount of time wasted on ineffectual discussions.

Download the topic whitepaper

Identify issues or governance challenges facing your charity or Non Profit Board. Understand the keys to what good governance looks like for your organisation in 2022, and beyond.
The phrase “good governance” can be an intangible, buzz-word, that is often used but difficult to derive meaning from and apply in practice. In reality, a good governance standard can and should take many forms.

The success of any organisation, including NonProfits (NFPs) will be dependent on the quality of its leadership. This starts at the board level, given that it is the board that is responsible for setting the tone of the organisation’s culture.

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Learn how to clearly articulate the culture the board requires for your organisation, and the different methodologies for monitoring and measurement.

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Organisational culture starts at the board level
Recent legal cases have clearly identified that boards are ultimately responsible for the culture of an organisation. What does this mean for you as a director and your board?

• Where should a Board start?
• How do we know what culture we require as a Board?
• What culture do we currently have, and what needs to change
• How should a Board monitor and measure culture and cultural change?
• How does the Board sustain a focus on culture over time?

Learn how;

• To gain clarity on how to clearly articulate the required culture
• To understand the boards role in ensuring the appropriate culture throughout the organisation 
• The board can appropriately monitor and measure culture through the organisation
• To deal with major organisational culture when it goes horribly wrong

This webinar explores the true impact and cost of payment fraud, the difference between internal and external fraud and why good organisations get caught out.

Know where the risks are in your organisation

Internal controls are limited by a number of factors including the very payment systems used to make payments themselves. Understanding that these limitations exist is an important part of governance and will help inform board members in understanding where risks exist in their organisation.


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Learn about 2021’s Top Five Governance Risks and Boards Top Tips for addressing them. Gain insight into how continuous Board and director review and development (Evaluation) is the number one tip for building your board's capabilities for being effective

The role of the director is evolving. Are you?

The concept of the 'Future Director' is a destination for all directors – regardless of age or tenure, aspiring or experienced – to become the relevant modern board members the world needs now, as well as into the future. They are fit for purpose, which at a basic level means being a leader who is self-aware and highly effective at creating the conditions for good decision-making and stewardship.

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Privately owned business board members experience both unique challenges and stimulating rewards. Our expert panel will discuss these in depth, sharing first hand insights and war stories.

It’s a far more human experience as you navigate family dynamics, founder personality and succession conversations. Sometimes decisions are made for reasons that are not commercial in nature. These organisations often have a stronger values base and deeper connection with their community. Board members need to be more agile and pragmatic in their approach. The rewards are great: decisions can be implemented quickly and success can be experienced first hand.

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Learn why a high-performance board starts with answering the question ‘what does great look like?’; and how the four pillars of board effectiveness help to create and sustain your board’s high-performance ambitions.

Download the topic white paper

Good governance is an active choice

It starts with us – as individual board members and as a board – to make the time and have the intention to create a system that supports the board and board members towards governance excellence. Effectively shaping the four interdependent pillars of board effectiveness :
1) People,
2) Information Architecture,
3) Structures and Processes,
4) Group Dynamics and Board Culture ,
will help you to achieve and sustain board effectiveness.

What you'll learn;

If you’re ready to take action towards building an effective board, this webinar will help you to:

• Understand what a high performing board is.
• Discover how to take meaningful action towards building a high performing board.
• Learn how the four pillars of board effectiveness help to create and sustain board effectiveness.
• Hear real world case studies on how to apply the four pillars of board effectiveness.

Learn why the preparation of board minutes is a vital component of directors’ responsibilities, and what good minutes contain. 

Download the Presentation Slides. 

Learn how reporting can slowly destroy an organisation or conversely, keep it focused and positioned for the future. 

Late reporting can kill the CEO either through director frustration and getting little or too much information, or the organisation facing threats to its future that are ignored through late reporting of trends, issues, or strategic implications.

Download the Presentation slides

An annual operating plan is a prized document

It's the blueprint for building your organisation in any given year. You wouldn’t build a house without architectural drawings. Unfortunately, many SME/NFP CEO’s run their organisation's with only a sketch of what they are building.

This webinar is aimed at CEOs of commercial and not for profit organisations with revenues between $2M and $40M and a functioning management/leadership team (i.e. 3+ managers) who don’t have a strong track record of strategic and operational planning

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Discover a quality engagement practice framework and 10 step facilitated processes for designing Board engagement with external stakeholders. Ideal for Chairs and Board members leading stakeholder engagement.

Partnering, alliancing and co-governance

Engagement practice continues to professionalise in our Australasian context. It has emerged from the fields of public participation and project management and is becoming increasingly valued. It integrates with aligned fields including communications, public relations, marketing, planning and evaluation. Due to significant drivers of change over recent years, many organisations are facing an increasing need to collaborate. This includes partnering, alliancing and co-governance approaches. Having a quality engagement approach produces clear benefits for organisations and communities. It is one of the best risk management mitigations you can apply to both external and internal organisational engagement. 

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Learn how to build a powerful working relationship with your CEO. Understand where it can go wrong and the seven things that every board can do to get it right.

Two out of Five CEOs fail in three years:

The success of your CEO comes down to having a solid connection between the board and the CEO. But how does a board do that while avoiding the common mistakes that destroy this critical relationship?

It starts with the Board understanding their overall purpose and role within the organisation and then cascading that down through the CEO position and relationship using proactive and practical methods to ensure organizational success.

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Effectively and efficiently integrate, activate, and motivate your board members. Learn why it matters and how to do it.

We expect board members to show up, but what we get are humans

Working with this fact, effectively and efficiently integrating, activating, and motivating your board members becomes much easier through the use of people-first principles and a purpose-focused board. This webinar will walk you through smart and practical techniques that all boards can introduce to create an engaged, empowered, and energised board.


Download the Presentation slides

Why attend?

Every board has the opportunity to leverage its inherent potential by attending this webinar. Specifically, this webinar will help you:

• Develop strategies to integrate and onboard new board members to deliver value fast
• Understand how to activate board members and ensure they are working on the right things at the right time
• Learn how to tap into board members’ motivations to sustain their board participation

Effectively and efficiently integrate, activate, and motivate your board members. Learn why it matters and how to do it.
Working with this fact, effectively and efficiently integrating, activating, and motivating your board members becomes much easier through the use of people-first principles and a purpose-focused board. This webinar will walk you through smart and practical techniques that all boards can introduce to create an engaged, empowered, and energised board.

Download the Presentation slides

Effective Board Engagement Key to Success:

Board engagement is a critical aspect of the success of a board. This includes engaging with potential new directors when recruiting, engaging with other board members, engaging with staff and senior executives, engaging with stakeholders to gather perspectives and understanding of the sector, and engaging before and after meetings.


Download the Presentation slides

Effective Board Engagement Key to Success:

Board engagement is a critical aspect of the success of a board. This includes engaging with potential new directors when recruiting, engaging with other board members, engaging with staff and senior executives, engaging with stakeholders to gather perspectives and understanding of the sector, and engaging before and after meetings.

Download the Presentation slides

Are you taking the preparation of your minutes seriously and do you know why you should?

Inquiries into organisational misdeeds and collapses invariably point to the shortcoming in board meeting minutes that might otherwise have explained and justified the decisions directors had taken. That scenario underlines only one of the reasons for the importance of having a thorough record of the board’s deliberations.

Download the Presentation slides

Ask our panel of experts any burning questions you have about governance, boards and board meetings
Our panelists bring a wealth of experience in a variety of business areas, including governance, board matters and administrative processes. They'll share their insights and take your questions on these topics (and others you might have), and provide valuable tips and strategies to help you achieve your governance goals.

Whether you're a business owner, company chair, CEO, board member, company secretary of administrative support, or simply interested in learning more about governance, we believe you'll find this webinar informative and engaging.

Improve your board effectiveness and learn the art of board annual work planning from Steven Bowman, Lynda Carroll and Giselle McLachlan, some of Australasia's leading experts in business governance and strategic planning.

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Learn where diversity of thought adds value for boards and what you can do to boost your board’s decision-making performance. This interactive session is full of research-based insights that you can apply to your board’s practices and wider organisation. Boards are called on to make complex decisions that affect whether their organisations will flourish or fail. Boards with wide-ranging diversity of thought can draw on different experiences, perspectives and cognitive preferences to avoid the unchallenged assumptions of groupthink. They can also demonstrate increased creativity, coming up with alternative approaches to opportunities and challenges.

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Are you looking to improve the effectiveness of your board packs and avoid costly mistakes? Our expert panel provide valuable insights on how to avoid common mistakes such as incomplete information, lack of clarity, poor presentation, and a lack of engagement among board members.

You'll also learn best practices for creating effective board packs, including tips on presentation, content, and timing. Don't miss this opportunity to enhance your skills and improve your organisation's decision-making.

Download the Presentation slides

Explore how technology is positively impacting boardrooms.

Join Raelene Castle for a cutting-edge webinar that will delve into the world of boardroom technology. Discover how innovations like AI tools, board software, document signing tools, and meeting AI are revolutionising the way board members work together, communicate, and make critical decisions.

Download the Presentation slides

Unlock success in a turbulent business world with our exclusive webinar

In today's volatile business world, effective crisis management is crucial for leaders. Our enlightening webinar helps you develop this vital skill, ensuring your organisation's long-term success and reputation. Learn from experienced professionals how to expertly navigate crises, maintain strong communication, and make sound decisions under pressure.

Download the Resource guide

An informative session for governors currently being exposed to the raft of opportunity that is AI, designed to equip directors with knowledge and tools to help with the explorations and decision making these new technologies represent.

Download the Webinar presentation

Your organisation’s culture can be a tremendous asset as it can drive innovation, boost employee contribution, and enhance customer satisfaction. However, on the flip side, culture can be the greatest risk to productivity, execution of strategy, compliance, reputation, and financial sustainability. Many of the indicators of culture risk are not visible to boards who are responsible for all the associated risks and negative impacts.

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Why do some chairs lead productive meetings whilst others struggle? In this webinar Julie Garland McLellan explores practical tools you can apply before and during meetings to remove friction and ensure your board operates as a cohesive decision-making team.

Every director will recognise the feeling of frustration when their board is stuck in a loop of disagreements, unable to make a decision, or struggling to remain focus on the decision rather than the impediments to progress. Few directors have a toolkit of actions they can take to remedy the situation and help the chair to regain the meeting’s momentum.

Learn how to focus the board on the issues rather than the dissent and how to make your meetings meaningful opportunities to share and develop ideas in this online professional forum

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Discover the groundbreaking findings of a 2022 study conducted by a leading business management school in the US, which revealed a remarkable 73% increase in productivity by implementing a simple yet effective policy: banning meetings three days a week. In this eye-opening video, Mike Burke delves into the reasons behind the productivity-crippling nature of excessive meetings and explore strategies to optimise collaboration and streamline decision-making.

Did you know that employees spend a staggering 85% of their time in meetings? Unsurprisingly, this constant interruption to workflow has a detrimental impact on productivity, resulting in inconsistency and unpredictability. Even top executives are dissatisfied with the effectiveness of decision-making processes, with 61% expressing their frustration, especially during meetings.

The negative effects of unproductive meetings are widespread, with executives reporting that more than half of their valuable time is wasted in meetings that fail to contribute effectively to decision-making. However, change is in the air. An insightful survey conducted by McKinsey highlighted that 80% of executives are now considering or have already implemented changes in meeting structures and frequencies to adapt to the evolving work landscape in the wake of the pandemic.

The undeniable truth is that efficient use of meeting time translates into better decision-making. This, in turn, drives key performance indicators (KPIs), shapes future strategies, and paves the way for long-term growth. But how can we maximize the potential of meetings, considering their integral role in our workflows and organizational structures? How can we foster high-value collaboration and optimize the limited time we have?

Join us in this thought-provoking video as we explore actionable techniques and best practices to reclaim your time and transform your meetings into productive powerhouses. Discover innovative approaches to meeting management, effective communication, and decision-making that will revolutionize your team's productivity and drive your organization towards success.

Don't let unproductive meetings hinder your progress any longer. Watch now and unlock the secret to achieving more with fewer meetings!

Download the Webinar presentation

Our panelists bring a wealth of experience in a variety of business areas, including governance, board matters and administrative processes. They'll share their insights and take your questions on these topics (and others you might have), and provide valuable tips and strategies to help you achieve your governance goals.

Whether you're a business owner, company chair, CEO, board member, company secretary of administrative support, or simply interested in learning more about governance, we believe you'll find this webinar informative and engaging.

Ever sat in your non-profit board meeting wondering if the board meeting would ever end? And what good governance really looks like? If so, this podcast is for you.

While many of despair at the current state of the world, with the economic, social and climate challenges we face, thousands of us are doing something about it by volunteering for the boards of NFP and community organisations. These board roles can be complex and often we have little training and support for them. As a result, NFP boards often get bogged down in operational detail and administration. Based on research undertaken for a Winston Churchill Fellowship, Dr Jo Cribb will share what works to support NFP boards to impactful, to get out the detail and into transforming their communities.

Download the Presentation slides

Why listen?

Listen to this podcast if you: 

• are on the board, or want to be on the board of a NFP or community group
• want to learn about how to be more effective on that board and make the most impact for your community
• want access to practical tools and templates to make your board work easier

This podcast is aimed at board members of non-profit and community organisations, Chairs, board advisors, Chief Executives and General Managers of non-profit's, those who want to be appointed to boards and anyone interested in the performance of non-profit boards.

Learn why a high-performance board starts with answering the question ‘what does great look like?’; and how the four pillars of board effectiveness help to create and sustain your board’s high-performance ambitions.

Good governance is an active choice

It starts with us – as individual board members and as a board – to make the time and have the intention to create a system that supports the board and board members towards governance excellence. Effectively shaping the four interdependent pillars of board effectiveness :
1) People,
2) Information Architecture,
3) Structures and Processes,
4) Group Dynamics and Board Culture ,
will help you to achieve and sustain board effectiveness.

Download the topic white paper

Why listen

If you’re ready to take action towards building an effective board, this podcast will help you to:

• Understand what a high performing board is.
• Discover how to take meaningful action towards building a high performing board.
• Learn how the four pillars of board effectiveness help to create and sustain board effectiveness.
• Hear real world case studies on how to apply the four pillars of board effectiveness.

This podcast is best suited best for Board Chairs, Board Members, Committee Chairs, Committee Members across all types of organisations and boards/committees.

Hubris is the enemy of board effectiveness and, therefore, organisational success. At this webinar, we unpack what hubris looks like in the boardroom and how to eliminate it with Peter Allen.

Research has shown that hubris is the chief enemy of learning and development of boards and, therefore, of the long-term survival of the organisations of which directors and trustees are custodians. Hubris makes people deaf to learning and threatened by it. If hubristic people hold sway on a board, rational, objective decision-making can be compromised, along with effective risk management.

At this webinar, learn how to eradicate hubris in the boardroom and pave the way for better decision-making, improved risk management, enhanced reputation, and a commitment to continuous growth and innovation by the board.

Download Peter Allens Research Paper

Why Listen?

Hubris is the greatest hindrance to learning and development in the boardroom and, therefore, board effectiveness. In the podcast, you will discover:

• What hubris looks like in the boardroom
• Why the 'fight' to remove hubris is a fight for board effectiveness
• The benefits of shedding hubris
• How to eliminate hubris from the boardroom
  
  

Learn how to use benchmarking to improve your board with Nicholas Barnett. Also, find out how to focus on the vital few to deliver the biggest improvement in your governance and oversight while ensuring your board increases its impact, adds value and leaves a lasting legacy.

Discover the power of benchmarking to evaluate your board's strengths and weaknesses, driving meaningful change. Learn why benchmarking is crucial for interpreting board survey results and how it enhances understanding. Explore key areas of board effectiveness supported by research and how a benchmarked survey can facilitate improvement. Focus on critical aspects to enhance governance, increase impact, add value, and create a lasting legacy.

Download the presentation slides.

Why Listen?

• Better Boards means Better Organisations
• Learn how to pick a good board survey from a bad one
• Find out why benchmarking can make all the difference
• Learn how to use a benchmarked report to drive change on your board
• Get a FREE short benchmarked report of your own board’s effectiveness

How to improve the probability of successful mergers & acquisitions through better transaction governance

In this interactive webinar, Dr Dean Blomson and our expert panel will discuss the following issues:

• Important themes coming out of recent research and direct experience;
• Why soft skills and self-awareness really matter and why critical challenge is the best defence;
• Key questions to ask, at each major stage, so that destruction of shareholder value does not happen on your watch;
• How boards and management need to become M&A match fit.

Watch the full webinar here or download the webinar presentation slides

The success of your CEO comes down to having a solid connection between the board and the CEO. But how does a board do that while avoiding the common mistakes that destroy this critical relationship?

It starts with the Board understanding their overall purpose and role within the organisation and then cascading that down through the CEO position and relationship using proactive and practical methods to ensure organisation success.

Learn from Lisa Cook, Simon Telfer and Lynda Carroll how to build a powerful working relationship with your CEO. Understand where it can go wrong and the seven things that every board can do to get it right.

Download the webinar white paper here

• The article discusses how to get a good Return on Attendance (ROA) from conferences that board members attend.
• The first step is to decide on the criteria for board attendance at any face-to-face event. This could include factors such as the relevance of the event to the organization, the quality of the speakers, and the opportunity for networking.
• Once the criteria have been established, board members who want to attend a conference need to clearly state their reasons for wanting to go and what they hope to achieve. They should also commit to sharing what they learn at the conference with the rest of the board.
• Board members should also make sure to arrive on time for events and sit near the front of the room. They should also be proactive in networking with other attendees and asking questions.
• After the conference, board members should take some time to summarize their notes and share them with the rest of the board. They should also follow up with any contacts they made at the conference.

Do your meetings tend to get unfocussed or off-track, or are they a sound use of time, focusing on strategic items that move your organisation forward?
Provide your directors with clarity on what they should do with each paper, and reduce the amount of time wasted on ineffectual discussions. 

Key Takeaways

There are only 11 (or so) opportunities for your board members to come together for their cyclical board meeting in a year. This webinar will help you;

• To see how a strategic agenda can be constructed with ease
• Learn how to keep your board focused 
• Minimise the amount of unnecessary information going to your board

In this podcast, you will learn how to create a concise and coherent strategic board meeting agenda.

Todays article demystifies the art of creating an effective skills-based board for organizations. Whether you're for-profit, for-purpose, or something else entirely, a well-constructed board skills matrix can be a game-changer. The article delves into what to include in this matrix, from hard skills to emotional intelligence and even diversity attributes. It addresses common questions like how to measure and survey board members, and crucially, how to leverage the matrix for positive organizational outcomes. The piece is a comprehensive guide to setting up, assessing, and optimizing a board that not only serves your current needs but also anticipates future challenges and opportunities. If you're involved in board development or governance, this is a must-read for you.

Learn from three of Australasia's top board secretaries why the preparation of board minutes is a vital component of directors’ responsibilities, and what good minutes contain.  

Includes: Bonus minute taking guide, and minutes template for attendees.

Are you taking the preparation of your minutes seriously and do you know why you should?

Inquiries into organisational misdeeds and collapses invariably point to the shortcoming in board meeting minutes that might otherwise have explained and justified the decisions directors had taken. That scenario underlines only one of the reasons for the importance of having a thorough record of the board’s deliberations.

Working too hard, doing too much, being too busy, is not a new thing: it can be dated back as far as 400 BC and Socrates, quoted as saying “beware the barrenness of a busy life”.  

There seems to be something inherent in the human DNA that has us think, feel and act busy. And we’re now grappling with unfettered activity-on-steroids, with our always-on internet-connected environment, turbo charged by COVID.

This is no more evident than in workplaces – and New Zealand workplaces are no exception. 

Live Demonstration of board AI tools

In this highly practical session you will gain an overview of AI tools relevant to those serving on Boards. Through a live demonstration, you'll see firsthand how AI-powered tools can revolutionise your Board operations and enhance the effectiveness of your Board members.

Gain valuable insights and walk away equipped with actionable knowledge, ready to implement these tools immediately after the session.

Unlock the Secret to Continual Board Strategy Refresh: Webinar Replay Now Available with Steven Bowman FAICD, Georgia Henry GAICD, and Richard McLean

Are you a Board member, senior executive, or someone deeply involved in strategic planning? Then, you can't afford to miss the replay of our recent webinar: "How to Continually Refresh Your Annual Board Strategy."

Why Watch the Replay?

Gain insights from some of Australasia's leading experts in business strategic planning and governance.

Learn how to use each Board meeting as a mini-strategy review, making your meetings not only more effective but possibly even shorter.

Discover techniques for running an annual review that serves as both a reflective exercise and an excellent induction opportunity for new Directors.

Key Takeaways:

1️⃣ No Plan Survives Contact With Reality: Understand the importance of fearless discussion with directors and senior executives about what's working and what isn't.

2️⃣ Focused Half-Day Strategy Review: Learn how to run an effective and focused half-day strategy review that can revolutionize your approach to strategic planning.

3️⃣ Strengthen Strategic Focus: Take away practical tips on how to reinforce the strategic orientation of your Board, ensuring that the organization stays agile and aligned with its mission.

Watch the Replay here https://boardpro.wistia.com/medias/owulzrbkal

Don't miss this chance to elevate your Board's strategic planning process! Share this with anyone who might find it useful.

Your Board Papers are vitally important. They prepare the board for the decisions that must be made and provide the board with the information they need to discharge their duty of oversight. Of all the Board Papers the CEO report is probably the most important.

Experienced directors will turn to and read this paper first. It sets the context for every other paper in the pack.

As such, it's a wonderful opportunity to prepare your board to be totally effective during the upcoming meeting.

However, many CEOs struggle, when faced with the tyranny of a blank screen, to put down their thoughts in a compelling and clear fashion that will engage the board and help to prepare them for a highly effective meeting.

Ideally your board report should serve two purposes:

1. to inform the board of the key changes that have occurred during the period since the last board meeting
2. to engage the board in providing advice and assistance to the CEO

Whilst many CEO reports do a good job with the first objective, most CEOs struggle with the second simply because they do not wish to put on record the areas that they are finding difficult. But here’s the problem, directors find it hard to read a report that is packed with information but that has no call to action or stimulus for creative thinking. Directors greatly prefer a report that has something in it for them to do.

Let’s look at each function in turn. And then let’s explore some tips to help you write quickly, effectively, and succinctly.

A New Paradigm

Historically, corporate governance was primarily concerned with fiduciary responsibilities and compliance. Boards often consisted of uniform groups of individuals with similar backgrounds, experiences, and worldviews. While this homogeneity may have supported unity and seamless decision-making, it also led to a restricted perspective, causing overlooked opportunities and stagnation.

As we ventured into the 21st century, the business world started to face new and intricate challenges that demanded more multifaceted and nuanced decision-making. In this complex environment, diversity quickly surfaced as an essential component of competent governance.

In the early days, the initial push often centred around demographic representation, especially gender, as many countries faced severe imbalances, with women significantly underrepresented in leadership roles. As businesses expanded globally, the need for cultural and international perspectives became more pronounced, leading to broader definitions of diversity. Governments and regulatory bodies began to intervene, establishing guidelines, regulations, or even quotas in some countries to promote diversity. With growing social consciousness, businesses began to recognise diversity as an ethical imperative and a strategic advantage, rather than just a compliance issue.

Shareholder activism also played a crucial role. Investors started to exert their influence, utilising tools like shareholder resolutions, proxy voting, and direct engagement with corporations to foster change.

The pursuit of board diversity is not just a fleeting trend but a vital part of modern corporate governance. It's a journey that requires understanding, commitment, and action from all stakeholders. By embracing diversity in its fullest sense, corporations can not only enhance their performance but also contribute to a more equitable and inclusive world.

Develop a CEO Report structure that works for your SME or Nonprofit

Once targets have been clearly defined, the CEO should be able to produce a report that clearly and easily gives the board the information they need. As a rule, the first two pages should be enough for board members to gather a broad understanding of the position of the business, without having to read any further. 

The governance landscape has incredible heterogeneity, from school boards through to listed companies. This webinar will identify the categories of organisations that pay generous director fees to their board members.

Extreme Inequality   

There are about half a million governing bodies in Australia, many of which are small and local. Board members contribute a meaningful portion of the total volunteering effort across the country. Less than 10% of board members are paid. Within the organisations that pay their directors, there are several clusters of well-paid roles. These will be identified during the webinar, along with the attributes of prospective directors for these roles

Reporting should never be about activity but rather about questions and strategic insights

Late reporting can kill the CEO either through director frustration and getting little or too much information, or the organisation facing threats to its future that are ignored through late reporting of trends, issues, or strategic implications.

Key Takeaways

Learn how can you can maximise your reporting impacts through;

• Ensuring the board receive your material in a timely manner
• Help focus the board through the design of your executive reports
• What directors need to know versus what they want to know
• The two questions that must be answered in any board report
• The two reporting issues that kill a CEO

This webinar is aimed at CEO's and executives who wish to gain more effectiveness and efficiency with their board reporting.

Whilst culture has become an essential focus for senior executives, middle managers and people leaders of all kinds, it is still not well understood. If you want to change your culture, you need to change the rules of belonging.

Key Takeaways

Culture is one of the most widely discussed and poorly understood concepts in organisational life. This webinar will:

• Clarify what culture is and isn’t (it isn’t employee engagement)
• Provide meaningful shared language for future discussions
• Allow leaders to clearly see the culture of any group
• Simplify the way to take action on shifting culture

Could looking at risk through a more strategic lens not only improve engagement, but also be the missing piece of the jigsaw that enables strategy execution? This webinar will provide key tips on how to improve engagement around risk as well as making your risk analysis more strategic. We will also look at the impact chat GPT, and how it can be used to propel risk analysis.

In this webinar you will learn about the impacts of technology on business models, and how it is not necessarily the technology that drives change or creates risk, but the business model.

We will look how risk and strategy are defined, and how by looking at risk through a more strategic lens helps with strategy execution. We will draw on lessons from industries that have been disrupted by technology to predict the impacts of AI. We will look at tools to help make your risk analysis more strategic, as well as looking at how Chat GPT can used be propel your risk analysis. We will finish by providing an overview of Flipview as a platform that helps bridge the gap between risk and strategy.

November 14th

Culture's Impact: Harnessing Positives, Navigating Risks for Strategy, Compliance, and Reputation in the Organisation Your organisation’s culture can be a tremendous asset as it can drive innovation, boost employee contribution, and enhance customer satisfaction.

However, on the flip side, culture can be the greatest risk to productivity, execution of strategy, compliance, reputation, and financial sustainability. Many of the indicators of culture risk are not visible to boards who are responsible for all the associated risks and negative impacts.

Masterclass course from BoardPro and Julie Garland McLellan

Learn how to contribute to effective boardroom dynamics to get the best out of the governance minds in the room and support high quality decision-making.

A key factor in building positive board dynamics

We have all been on those boards where there is a person who just seems to disrupt the flow, sees the world differently or consistently seeks out opportunities for conflict. How we respond to these situations is a key factor in building positive board dynamics. While a skilled Chair helps, every board member has a responsibility for the success of the meeting and the quality of the decisions made. Learn about the key ingredients of effective board dynamics and how these contribute to high quality decision-making. 

Learn how to open up your strategy process to overcome limitations of traditional top-down strategy work. Understand which open strategy techniques serve your organisation to develop better strategies and get commitment within your entire organisation.

Join us to explore open techniques for dynamic strategy creation, formulation and execution. Discover how to harness the power of diverse insights, overcome cognitive biases, and build buy-in for strategic transformation.

We'll delve into specific tools and their role in anticipating disruptions, emphasising transparency, collaboration, and diversity throughout your strategy process. Learn how embracing open strategy can lead to faster implementation, and a competitive edge in a rapidly changing business landscape. Don't miss out on this opportunity to revolutionise your approach to strategy and drive your organisation forward.

Understanding boards' information needs is crucial for creating an enduring legal record of diligence, ensuring comprehensive and accurate documentation, fostering transparency, and aiding in informed decision-making, thereby strengthening corporate governance.

Directors are generalists, not specialists in your discipline, and they need concise yet comprehensive board papers. This session focuses on key techniques for effective communication, crafting concise summaries, simplifying complex concepts, and organising information coherently.

Your board paper will be enhanced by understanding the mechanisms and protocol for delivery, discussion, decision-making and recording. In this session we will consider:

1. Process and preparation of board packs 
2. Use of portals and technology 
3. Security and privilege  
4. Managing your mention in the minutes

Learn how to develop and structure a strategic board agenda that keeps the board focused on the important matters during the meeting.

Focus only on those strategic items that matter

Do your meetings tend to get unfocussed or off-track, or are they a sound use of time, focusing on strategic items that move your organisation forward?

Provide your directors with clarity on what they should do with each paper, and reduce the amount of time wasted on ineffectual discussions. 

Exceptional board performance is pivotal for organisational success. Discover how to measure and improve your board’s effectiveness with evaluations that help to transform team dynamics and deliver better outcomes.

Complacency can be a killer.  “We’ve always done it this way” is a solution to nothing, yet it is so often cited as a reason for continuing with the status quo – even when the status quo is not working.  Board evaluations are the cornerstone for assessing, improving and refining a board’s performance. By delving into a variety of evaluation methods, boards can pinpoint and identify both commendable practices and areas needing attention.

Such insights bolster cohesive teamwork and enable more informed strategic choices, leading to better decision-making. Join us to explore a variety of evaluations options, turning them into catalysts for board and organizational excellence.

Traditional Board induction packs can leave new Directors disengaged (even before they begin). This can be challenging especially if you want them to reach their potential quickly but don’t have the time to coach them personally through this transition.

Imagine if...

• All the Directors who undertook your Board induction were confident and prepared at their first meeting.
  
  
• Each of your new Directors was asking the right questions, reading and participating in all Board papers and discussions.
  
  
• All new Directors were enthusiastic about their tenure, and brought fresh insights to the table, even if they are volunteers with little to no formal experience.

Understand where and how to start your board career. Across two webinars you’ll learn how to develop a replicable approach to breaking into the boardroom and landing your ideal board role.

Embark on a transformative journey to the boardroom with our exclusive two-part webinar series, designed to illuminate the path towards a successful board career. Discover the strategic insights and practical guidance necessary to navigate the complexities of securing your first board position. Through these webinars, you'll gain access to a replicable blueprint for breaking into the boardroom and securing your ideal role.

Whether you're just beginning to consider board service or are actively seeking to land your first board position, this series will equip you with the essential tools and knowledge needed to turn your aspirations into reality. Join us to unlock the door to influential board roles and begin shaping the future of governance.

Join us for our enlightening webinar, 'Does governance need a reboot? Time to think about Governance 4.0? with the esteemed Dr Dean Blomson and our expert panel with Steven Bowman and Lynda Carroll.

Dean will be guiding us through a comprehensive exploration of where and how the current corporate governance model is showing significant signs of ‘wear and tear’. Dean will draw on his research conducted with Ernst Young into board operating models of the future, considering first whether the current, prevailing governance model has passed its use-by-date for many companies, and why.

Is the board operating model design, originally intended for the needs of the late 1800’s, relevant and ‘workable’ today? He will outline the forces at play facing companies in the main, and from that, consider a set of implications for future board models.

Dean, supported by the panel, will discuss the areas of ‘common pain’, how to recognise and being to address the possible fracture lines that boards should be aware of.

In this second of two webinars, you will learn how to develop a proactive board search strategy to get you on board faster. Dive deeper into your board career journey with the second installment of our webinar series, where we focus on crafting a proactive board search strategy to accelerate your path to a board position.

This session is dedicated to empowering you with advanced techniques and actionable strategies to enhance your visibility and attractiveness to boards seeking new members. Learn from seasoned board members and industry experts how to effectively network, leverage your unique skills, and position yourself as an indispensable candidate.

If you're serious about securing a board role swiftly, this webinar is the key to unlocking opportunities and achieving your goals with precision and speed. Join us and take a significant step towards making your boardroom aspirations a reality.

Dive deep into the strategic realm of engaging with risk in boardroom discussions. Move from compliance and reporting against your risk register, to unlocking strategic advantage and new revenue sources from unpacking and leveraging risk at the Board table.

A unique opportunity to gain valuable insights into transforming risk discussions into strategic advantages. Learn tips from some of the most astute Board risk advisors and practitioners who have participated in many hundreds of Board discussions This session will explore a more focused view of what are key risks, how does the Board identify risk, and how do Directors best engage with risk reporting and subsequent risk discussions.

This webinar will illuminate the intricate landscape of conflicts of interest within the boardroom. Navigating conflicts effectively is not just a skill; it's a necessity for maintaining integrity, fostering trust, and ensuring sustainable organizational success.

Through this webinar, our aim is to provide you with actionable takeaways that can be immediately applied in your boardroom responsibilities. Explore the many case studies and “in the trenches” stories that illustrate how difficult situations have been handled, the various nuances of conflicting interests, and what happens if this is not professionally and competently handled.

Join Nicholas Barnett and our expert panel as we delve into the crucial role of the Board Skills Matrix in the director selection process.

Discover the benefits of maintaining an up-to-date matrix to ensure you select the most suitable directors and avoid common pitfalls that could lead to costly mistakes.

Learn how to refine your approach by incorporating business acumen and strategic insight into your board's composition. Moreover, Nicholas and the panel will illuminate the increasing significance of behavioural traits in today's board dynamics. Don't miss this opportunity to enhance your board's effectiveness and governance standards. Sign up now to secure your spot.

There are some things that boards find easy to do.  One is to involve themselves in business operations, much to the frustration of many CEOs.  

The other is to create committees to which to delegate all manner of work and tasks. But are all committees created equal? Are they all necessary and fit for purpose?  This webinar will consider how to construct and enable committees to do the work and provide support to the board as designed and required.

The other is to create committees to which to delegate all manner of work and tasks. But are all committees created equal? Are they all necessary and fit for purpose?  This webinar will consider how to construct and enable committees to do the work and provide support to the board as designed and required.This webinar will look at the role of committees in the good governance of boards and organisations and how a board decides what committees it needs to have and for what purpose. The session will cover matters including;

• Committee structure,
• Internal governance
• Membership
• Drafting of charters or terms of reference.

In addition, the importance of to whom and how committees report their recommendations will be noted, as will the work necessary to support committees and enable them to function as intended and expected. Finally, the question will be whether or not a committee is actually required or would a working group suffice instead?

The most common complaint of Directors is “Our Board needs to be more strategic”. But what does this mean? How do you go about creating this? What works, and what doesn’t? What can you do?

Join us for 45 minutes of insights, practical tools and easy-to-implement techniques aimed squarely at helping Directors be strategic.

From personally being strategic, cultivating your strategic mindset, techniques you can use even when everyone around you is in the weeds, through to the latest strategies in designing Board agendas, Board papers and shaping Board discussions.

For CEOs, Executive leadership teams, new Directors, and experienced Chairs.

Join us as we explore the impact of AI and how as directors we can prepare for a future where AI will continue to redefine how we do business.

Artificial intelligence capabilities continue to rapidly evolve. The emergence of widely available generative AI marked a significant milestone, with ground- breaking products such as ChatGPT, Bing AI, Microsoft Copilot and Gemini AI, entering our homes and workspaces. 

Directors cannot put their heads in the sand or tinker around the edges. Instead, they should support their organisations to embrace the AI challenge, including taking advantage of capability and productivity gains while prudently managing risks.

Explore the critical functions of Board Members, Executive Directors, and your Company secretary in shaping the strategic direction and impact of not for profit organisations.

Not-for-profit governance is becoming an increasingly scrutinised, regulated and debated topic. This is partly as a result of the increasing size and complexity of organisations in this sector, as well as an increase in corporate regulation generally.

This webinar will provide invaluable insights into effective leadership, governance structures, and best practices driving mission-driven success. Don't miss this opportunity to elevate your understanding of nonprofit leadership and governance excellence.

As a Board member or Senior Manager of a reporting entity, you bear significant obligations under the AML/CFT Act. Are you confident that you have them fully covered?

AML/CFT supervisors are increasingly wielding their powers of monitoring and enforcement to ensure reporting entities are meeting their AML obligations. It's crucial for board members and senior management to understand how these developments impact their roles and how to effectively manage ongoing AML obligations.

In this webinar, you'll gain invaluable insights from industry experts.  Discover best practices, practical strategies, and the latest regulatory updates to ensure your organisation remains compliant and resilient in the face of AML/CFT challenges.

Secure your spot now to stay ahead of the curve and safeguard your organisation's reputation and integrity.

The governance legislative framework is generally the same, irrespective of a company's age or stage. However, due to their size, limited resources, and founder expertise, early-stage companies have their own unique requirements.

• Gain insights from experienced panellists on distinguishing governance practices in early-stage companies from those in larger, public corporations.
• Understand the unique demands of startup boards, including the need for flexibility, effective risk management, and investor relations strategies.
• Learn how addressing these specialised demands can bolster investor confidence and enhance capital strategies in early-stage ventures.
• Acquire practical knowledge to navigate the dynamic governance landscape of startups and optimise board performance for sustainable growth.

Are you taking the preparation of your minutes seriously, and do you know why you should?
Inquiries into organisational misdeeds and collapses invariably point to the shortcoming in board meeting minutes that might otherwise have explained and justified the decisions directors had taken. That scenario underlines only one of the reasons for the importance of having a thorough record of the board’s deliberations.

Listen to our webinar  recording to discover how meticulous board meeting minutes can safeguard your organisation and ensure transparency in critical decision-making processes. Don't miss this opportunity to elevate your governance standards!

Listen to our webinar to assess if your constitution meets today's needs! Learn how to read it critically, understand historical clauses, and explore how to amend it effectively. Stay informed about modern trends and key issues.

Our expert speakers will guide you through the intricacies of constitutional analysis, offering practical insights and real-world examples. You'll have the chance to ask questions, and gain valuable resources to help you navigate the complexities of constitutional amendments.

Whether you're a board member, legal advisor, or organisational leader, this webinar is tailored to provide you with the tools and knowledge you need to make informed decisions. By attending, you'll be better equipped to address potential challenges and ensure that your constitution reflects the evolving needs of your organisation.

Register now and be part of this essential discussion! Take the first step towards a more robust and adaptable constitution. We look forward to seeing you there!

According to studies, some 60–90% of strategic plans never fully launch (HBR). This webinar will provide practical tips and tools on shifting strategy from words on a page to impactful action.

Bridging The Gap – Strategic Design and Operational Implementation

When bridging the gap, Chairs and CEOs should be considering the strategy design process and preempting the execution gaps. Join us to discuss the two most important facets:
1) An iterative CEO led Strategic Design process with the Board and,
2) A rigorous Execution Cadence led by Management.

This webinar will cover how to tackle common pitfalls of misalignment, lack of engagement, and inadequate traction.

There would not be a director in the world who has not had a gripe about the conduct of a colleague at one time or another for annoying, frustrating or downright dreadful behaviour during a board meeting.  If you’re one of them join this session to hear about approaches to instilling a code for meeting etiquette.

How directors conduct themselves at the board table has a big influence on the success and effectiveness of meetings and thus on the performance of the organisations they serve.  Indiscretions can be small and aggravating or big and adversely influential from subverting good governance practice to blatant bullying and everything in between.  However everyone is responsible for their behaviour and should understand they will be called to account if the rules of engagement aren’t adhered to.

This session will address meeting etiquette, what it encompasses, the place of the code of conduct or board charter, and the role of the chair in setting and maintaining standards.

Register for our free Webinar

What role do you have on the board?*
Board Chair
CEO - Executive Director
Board Member
Company Secretary
Executive
Administrator / Board Secretary
Governance Specialist

14th August 2024

A difficult director can derail the performance of a board very quickly. This webinar will provide tips for how to tackle conversations with directors that are causing problems.

Difficult directors come in all shapes and sizes – some never listen to the opinions of others, some are aggressive, some barely fulfil their commitments. In all cases, a difficult director left unchecked will cause dysfunction, a lack of unity or otherwise impact the smooth operation of the board.

Dealing with these situations in a timely manner is imperative for the ongoing success of a board. This webinar will provide a framework so that you can confidently prepare for and engage in difficult – but constructive – conversations.

Increasingly boards are in the frame when things go perilously wrong and people die.  Industrial manslaughter legislation exists in several jurisdictions putting the onus on directors to know how their compliance 'T's were crossed and 'I's dotted.  What they knew when and what they did with the information when they had it.  Could or should they have done more? Compliance requirements pervade all levels of an organisation and includes the maintenance of board policies, asking management for more information when required, and understanding the scope and extent of delegations.

This session won’t necessarily be able to answer all your questions, but it will be a start to how you might think differently about compliance being someone else’s responsibility.

This webinar is meticulously designed to illuminate what 'fit-for-purpose' governance really means in today's dynamic business environment. 
Dr Dean Blomson, supported by the panel, of Steven Bowman and Lisa Cook, will delve into why it is crucial for any organisation to develop a bespoke governance model that fits its unique needs, not generic, ‘one-size-fits-all’ governance. 
Dean will briefly touch on his research into new operating model constructs (shared in a previous session on 7 March 2024 – ‘Governance 4.0’); the key topics and questions the board and executive need to ask themselves (and answer) in order to determine what ‘fit-for-purpose’ means for them. 
Dean, together with the panel will be offering actionable suggestions for boards and executives.

Explore using skill matrixes to ensure effective director succession planning and onboarding. Understand how to identify the right competencies, balance the board’s collective expertise, and plan for future needs.

In today’s business world, boards must be agile, diverse, and prepared for future challenges. A skill matrix is a powerful tool that helps boards evaluate their current capabilities, identify gaps, and ensure they have the right mix of skills for long-term success.

This webinar will guide you through creating and utilising a skill matrix for director succession planning and onboarding. We will cover key elements such as identifying essential skills, assessing current directors, and planning for strategic recruitment and training.

How to establish an Adaptive Strategy and bring the board and organisation on the journey. 

As the rate of change increases and the world becomes more complex and uncertain, traditional strategy methods become less effective. Over the last few years new methods of creating and activating strategy have been developed. Adaptive strategy provides a new paradigm in strategic thinking. Using our experience with The Guardians of NZ Superannuation we will show how we co-created an Adaptive Strategy and how it influences and guides decision making.

Are you struggling to balance the competing interests and priorities of board members, employees, investors and others? In this webinar, you will learn practical tips on how to negotiate stakeholder alignment and build commitment to the organisation’s success.

You will also learn practical tips and actionable strategies for negotiating stakeholder alignment and building commitment to the organization’s success. Our expert presenters, Fiona McKenzie , and Steven Bowman will guide you through proven frameworks to identify key interests, mediate conflicts, and create a shared vision that resonates with all stakeholders. 

Whether you're a board member, executive, or team leader, this webinar will empower you to turn stakeholder challenges into opportunities for growth and strategic alignment.

Learn how to develop and structure a strategic board agenda that keeps the board focused on the important matters during the meeting.

Focus only on those strategic items that matter

Do your meetings tend to get unfocussed or off-track, or are they a sound use of time, focusing on strategic items that move your organisation forward?

Provide your directors with clarity on what they should do with each paper, and reduce the amount of time wasted on ineffectual discussions.